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Maryam Rajavi Testimony 4/29/15

Text of Testimony by Mrs. Maryam Rajavi,

The President-elect of the National Council of Resistance of Iran
Submitted to:
The House Foreign Affairs Committee,
Subcommittee on Terrorism, Non-Proliferation and Trade
April 29, 2015

Mr. Chairman, Ranking Member,
Distinguished members of the Committee,
Thank you for giving me this opportunity to speak to you.
Today, Islamic fundamentalism and extremism, in the name of ISIS or Shiite paramilitary
groups, have launched a vicious onslaught against territories spanning from East Asia to
the southern and eastern shores of the Mediterranean, sparing neither the Americas nor
Europe.
For 36 years, we have resisted a religious tyranny, driven by Islamic fundamentalism, and
fought for democracy in Iran.
Before getting into the details, allow me to briefly touch upon a few points:
1. Islamic fundamentalism and extremism emerged as a threat to regional and global
peace and tranquility after a religious dictatorship (based on the principle of the
velayat-e faqih, or absolute rule of the clergy) came to power in Iran in 1979. Since
then, the regime in Tehran has acted as the driving force for, and the epicenter of,
this ominous phenomenon regionally and worldwide.

2. The primary objective of fundamentalism is to establish an Islamic Empire (or
Caliphate) and enforce Sharia law by force. It neither recognizes any boundaries nor
differentiates between Sunnis and Shiites. Aggressiveness and the penchant for
violence primarily characterize Islamic fundamentalism. As such, searching for
moderates among its adherents is an illusion.

3. In 1993, we published a book entitled, “Islamic Fundamentalism; the New Global
Threat,”1 warning about this menace and identifying its epicenter as Tehran. We
reiterated that the clerical regime sought to acquire the nuclear bomb in order to
export its reactionary ideology and to guarantee its own survival. Regrettably, this
threat was not taken seriously. The experience of the past three decades shows that in the absence of a firm policy vis-à-vis the regime in Tehran, the world will face destructive consequences.

4. Unfortunately, the failure to thwart the Iranian regime’s post-2003 meddling in Iraq enabled it to gradually occupy that country, propelling the unprecedented spread of extremism. Similarly, the atrocities perpetrated by (the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps’) Quds Force in Syria and Iraq (to prop up Tehran’s puppets, Bashar al-Assad and Nuri al-Maliki), and the massacre and the exclusion of Sunnis, coupled with Western silence, empowered ISIS. 5. I reiterate that the mullahs’ regime is not part of any solution as we attempt to deal with Islamic fundamentalism; it is indeed the heart of the problem.

5. I reiterate that the mullahs’ regime is not part of any solution as we attempt to deal
with Islamic fundamentalism; it is indeed the heart of the problem.